Puji_maki
patreon
BSL 20
🕑 Added 2025-05-22 16:19:18 +0000 UTCBehind The Spotlight Chapter 20
"Here's your change."
"T- Thank you... Ahh~"
Esmeralda forced a smile as the fat fuck in front of her inhaled the change she gave. She had been working in this pizzeria for two years now. She was an aspiring actress who left her hometown hoping to find success in Hollywood.
The outcome, she was now a cashier in this pizzeria. The fat guy who was deeply inhaling the scent of the pennies stared at her with a lewd, lusty gaze. Esmeralda felt disgusted but held herself back from vomiting. She had met a fair share of creeps but people who inhaled pennies like they were drugs was another thing.
The fat guy left after getting a box of pizza. There was a stain on his crotch for some reason.
"Phew, that guy had been visiting our shop for days now. God, why do you give me hard battles? I feel like I'm going to be assaulted a few days from now... Please don't be a foreshadow."
While muttering to herself, the phone rang. Esmeralda answered the call.
"FuckDominoes Pizzeria, the best pizza in Hollywood. Hello, can I know your order? What, you're not here for the order? You're from ANT, isn't that a huge talent agency? Yes, yes, I'll call Lawrence right now."
Being an "actress", Esmeralda knew about ANT. Apex Network Talent was one of the big talent agencies in Hollywood. Last month she applied for this agency and she still hasn't received an answer. So when she heard that the person on the phone was an agent from ANT, Esmeralda unconsciously agreed.
"Lawrence, someone from ANT is looking for you!"
Esmeralda excitedly yelled. Even though she was not the person in question, she was still excited.
Lawrence, who had flour dust on his shoulders, came out of the kitchen as fast as possible. Lawrence didn't have a phone number so he used their shop's landline phone number as a way to contact him. He had been waiting for the news since yesterday.
He had a hard time sleeping, hoping to witness a miracle. Even though the project he was going to work on was a small-budget one, it was important to him. This could determine his future.
Lawrence grabbed the phone.
"Hello, yes, that's me. You want to meet me!? Of course, of course! My job is done around 3 pm. I'll go to your agency later. Thank you, thank you so much."
The person who called him was Collin East, one of the panel judges in the audition.
Collin didn't have a clue why the talent agent wanted to meet him in person, but he knew it would be good news. Most of the time, Collin would just receive a call that said that he didn't pass the audition or sometimes he received no call at all.
This was different from what he usually experienced, which meant that he had a strong chance to pass the audition and become part of a movie!
Lawrence was so happy that he smiled ear to ear as he returned to the kitchen.
"Wait, Lawrence. The call was about the audition you did yesterday, right?" Esmeralda called him and asked.
"That's right," Lawrence answered. No point in hiding it.
"Then..." Esmeralda shyly looked down. "Are you single?"
.........
......
...
At exactly 3:45 pm, Lawrence arrived at the ANT building. His hands still smell faintly of pepperoni and dish soap. He adjusted his secondhand jacket. His nerves twitched as he stepped into the sleek tiled floor building.
He talked to the receptionist who guided him to the reception area on the ground floor.
Lawrence looked around and saw some agents talking to gorgeous and handsome people. Perhaps these agents were trying to convince them to sign a contract.
Then, Lawrence saw Collin already sitting at the table, flipping the pages of a magazine. Lawrence recognized the man as he met him yesterday. Collin showed great interest in him. Yet didn't expect that Collin was a talent agent.
"Sir," that was the only word Lawrence could mutter as he approached the man.
"Lawrence, sit down."
Collin smiled. He subconsciously looked above Lawrence's head but he didn't see any words. It indicated that Lawrence was currently not using his talent at the moment.
Collin nodded as Lawrence sat down.
"It says from your resume that you're a theater actor."
"That's right, I was a theater actor back in high school. I was part of the theater club." He further explained.
"I see, I see..." Collin read his resume thrice so he remembered most of the things written in there.
"It seems like you're excited and you probably have an idea why I invited you to this building."
"..." Lawrence gulped.
"I want to be your agent. I will help you find your place in Hollywood."
'You will become the staple of Comedy and Romance movies... Heck, you can fit RomCom movies too since they are a combination of Comedy and Romance.' Kazir smiled knowingly.
Lawrence had a golden talent as a Romance Box Office Hit Actor and yellow talent as a Comedy Actor. Collin had an inkling about the actor's potential. It was hard to find a specific talent like Lawrence.
Collin could prove it right now. He looked around and stared at the talent agents who were convincing some newbie actors to sign a contract with them. These agents had words floating above their heads, and most of the agents had yellow talent in Negotiation and Communication. But none of them had golden talent, it showed how rare golden talent was.
'... Especially specific talent. I have no idea what exactly a Romance Box Office Hit Actor means, but I'll see to it.'
For now, Collin wanted to convince Lawrence to partner with him. That was the first stage of this business deal.
